The former head of Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, Jeremy Ractliffe, has been charged with illegally keeping uncut diamonds given to him by supermodel Naomi Campbell in 1997.

Ractliffe admitted he had the gems after Campbell mentioned him at the war crimes trial of the ex-Liberian leader Charles Taylor in August.

Ractliffe then handed the gems to police and resigned from the fund.

Prosecutors say the stones are blood diamonds which Taylor gave to Campbell at a dinner in 1997.

National Director of Public Prosecutions spokesman Mthunzi Mhaga said Ractliffe appeared in a Johannesburg court on Tuesday and had his case adjourned until October 27.

Taylor, 62, is charged with murder, rape and enslavement for his alleged role in the 1991-2001 civil war in Sierra Leone.

He is accused of receiving "blood diamonds" in return for arming rebels who murdered, raped and maimed Sierra Leone civilians during the conflict, which claimed some 120,000 lives.

Campbell told judges she gave the three uncut diamonds to Ractliffe, then the chief executive of the Children's Fund, to "do something good with".

The day after her testimony, Ractliffe confirmed he had kept the stones and had never given them to the charity, saying he did not want to involve the organisation in any potentially illegal activities.

It is illegal in South Africa to possess uncut diamonds without a licence.